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UPDATE: Man arrested in overnight assault, robbery

Nathaniel Young

Police said today that a man was arrested overnight on charges he sexually assaulted and robbed a woman in eastside Savannah.

Shortly after 11 p.m. Saturday, officers responded to the 1200 block of Henry Street, where a man had approached a woman who was walking in the area, said Gena Moore, spokeswoman for Savannah-Chatham police.

The victim told police that the man "acted like he had a weapon and demanded money," Moore said.

The woman complied, and the man led her across the street to a spot between two abandoned houses, Moore said. The suspect then sexually assaulted her and fled on foot, she said.

The police officers swarmed the area, and a suspect identified as James Gardner was arrested at 33rd and Harmon streets, Moore said.

Gardner, 40, was charged with armed robbery, sodomy and kidnapping, Moore said. He is expected to be arraigned within the next week.